Foreign visitor spending falls in Azerbaijan in H1 2026
Foreign tourists spent 715.9 million US dollars in Azerbaijan during the first half of 2026, declining 21 percent compared with the same period last year, according to the country's State Statistical Committee, Qazinform News Agency correspondent reports.
The sharpest share of visitor spending went to transportation services, which totaled 325.9 million US dollars, down 22 percent year over year. Expenditure on accommodation also fell significantly, dropping 30 percent to 130.6 million US dollars.
Spending on food and dining reached 132.4 million US dollars, marking a 19 percent decrease from the first six months of 2025. Foreign visitors also reduced their spending on cultural events and excursions, which declined 21.3 percent to 4.1 million US dollars.
Purchases of package tours totaled 335,800 US dollars between January and June, representing an 18.2 percent decline compared with the same period a year earlier.
Despite the overall drop in tourism spending, expenditure on sports and entertainment services increased. Foreign visitors spent 5.6 million US dollars on these activities during the six-month period, up 3.4 percent year over year.
According to the State Statistical Committee, Azerbaijan welcomed approximately 1.92 million foreign visitors in the first half of 2026. The largest numbers of arrivals came from Russia, Türkiye, Iran, Georgia and Kazakhstan.
Earlier, Qazinform reported a population of Azerbaijan surpasses 10 million.